Digital Learning Intensive: Planning A Fruitful Sabbatical
When: March 26, 2025 | Noon–1:30 PM EST
Who: Lead pastors, staff pastors, elders, and spouses
Cost: $25 per screen (invite your spouse or team to join you!)
Format: Live digital cohort with teaching, Q&A, and conversation
Led by Rusty McKie, this session will be recorded and available for later viewing.
A major pain point in pastoral ministry is burnout—the slow erosion of joy, energy, and spiritual vitality that comes from pouring out without adequate time to be refilled.
Are you tired and worn out from ministry? Isn't Jesus' burden supposed to be light?
You feel it every week—the exhaustion that a day off can't quite fix, the soul-weariness that lingers even after vacation, the nagging sense that you're running on fumes. The weight of caring for everyone else while neglecting your own soul can be crushing.
Join Rusty McKie for a pastoral conversation about planning a sabbatical that truly refreshes your soul.
Rusty McKie is a spiritual director, sabbatical coach, and founder of Steadfast Ministries. As author of Sabbaticals: How-To Take a Break from Ministry before Ministry Breaks You, Rusty understands that pastoral ministry uniquely mixes the personal, vocational, and spiritual parts of your life. A sabbatical isn't just time off—it's an intentional season to address repressed grief, find deep rest, and recalibrate for sustainable ministry.
Rusty will help you see that the ancient practice of sabbath provides wisdom on how to enter into rest in Christ—and that rest isn't laziness, it's humble recognition that you're not God, and that's good news.
In this Digital Learning Intensive, you'll explore:
How to recognize when you need more than just a day of rest
The difference between workaholism and working "heartily, as for the Lord"
How to structure your sabbatical for maximum spiritual refreshment
What "soul work" looks like when you finally slow down enough to see clearly
How to return to ministry with renewed vision and energy
This isn't about guilt for being tired. It's about gaining permission to rest, wisdom for planning well, and hope that sustainable, joyful ministry is possible.
What to Expect
This 90-minute digital gathering creates space for teaching, interaction, and honest conversation. You'll leave with:
Practical frameworks and templates to help you plan your sabbatical
Clarity on the spiritual and emotional work of true rest
Relief from the pressure to keep going at an unsustainable pace
Connection with other pastors who understand the unique weight of ministry
Recalibration for long-term faithfulness and joy in your calling
Harbor's Digital Learning Intensives are designed to be intimate, accessible, and interactive—small enough for real conversation, affordable enough for your whole team to join.
About Rusty McKie
Rusty McKie is a spiritual director, sabbatical coach, and the founder of Steadfast Ministries, where he helps pastors and ministry leaders find rest, renewal, and sustainable rhythms for long-term faithfulness. He is the author of Sabbaticals: How-To Take a Break from Ministry before Ministry Breaks You and has spent years walking alongside weary pastors through seasons of deep soul care and spiritual formation. Rusty's heart is to help ministry leaders recognize that rest is not a luxury—it's a sacred necessity for those who shepherd God's people.